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Avila's TSS Pound for Pound List
Floyd “Money” Mayweather continues to rule the world of prizefighting as the recognized best boxer pound for pound in the world.
The Las Vegas boxer may only fight two or three times a year but when Mayweather steps into the boxing ring all eyes are focused on his world. Whether it’s boxing related or not, even the casual and non-boxing fan knows what the welterweight world champion is doing.
Can anybody beat Mayweather?
At least a couple other prizefighters are listed below that have a shot at dethroning Mayweather. One or two have an opportunity to actually face him and some others have a long shot opportunity. But can they do the job?
This pound for pound list is built on steady achievement. There is no hopscotching over another fighter simply because he knocked out an opponent spectacularly. Popularity doesn't play a role on this list either. It has to be earned by beating another pound for pound fighter or by domination of one or two weight classes at least. Some have dominated multiple weight classes and that is a big reason they are on this list.
A fighter begins near the bottom of the list and moves up by beating a fellow pound for pound fighter or by winning against top competition. Sometimes the competition may not be well known but that happens in the world of boxing. Television influences a lot of readers and a fighter's recognition factor is often based on television exposure. I'm not concerned with television exposure, only who a fighter beats in head to head competition.
Here's the list:
1. Floyd Mayweather (43-0, 26 KOs) – Now 35, Mayweather put on a spectacular performance with his win over Puerto Rico's Miguel Cotto last May in Las Vegas. That fight showed that despite age creeping into his body, those skills pay the bills. A few fighters below could give Mayweather a very competitive fight. We'll see what happens in 2013.
2. Juan Manuel Marquez (54-6-1, 39 KOs) – Few have remained on a pound for pound list like the 39-year-old Mexico City warrior Marquez. In his nearly 20-year career one can proclaim that he's only been beaten once in the boxing ring and that came against Mayweather back in 2009. He's set to face Manny Pacquiao once again. More than a few are predicting a clear cut victory this time.
3. Timothy Bradley (29-0, 12 KOs) – After dethroning Manny Pacquiao by decision last June it was assumed a rematch would take place to quiet the doubters. It didn't happen. Bradley's promoter decided to go another direction and that has left hard core boxing fans upset. The “Desert Storm” has to wait for another moment but he does have the qualities to step in the ring with the best of the best and emerge victorious. He's been doing it his entire career. Can he beat Mayweather, Marquez or Brandon Rios? We’d love to see those fights happen.
4. Manny Pacquiao (54-4-2, 38 KOs) – The Filipino hurricane finally showed signs of slowing this past summer when he lost to Tim Bradley by decision. For the first time the turbo charged prizefighter seemed to be running on only four pistons instead of eight. For most of the fight against Bradley he put his foot on the pedal in the last minute of every round. That's not the usual Pacman style. At his best he was a fighting machine that never stopped. All you had to do was point him in the right direction and he would dominate. Are those days over? We’ll find out in December.
5. Sergio Martinez (50-2-2, 28 KOs) – For 11 rounds the speedy left-handed Martinez showed off his impressive skills against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. this past September. Then came round 12 and the Argentine was caught by a right hand and some other bombs from the kid. Martinez survived only because of his remarkable stamina and hard work done in weeks of training before the fight. At age 37, there are only so many fights left in his career. Hopefully a match with Mayweather can be made. Maybe even Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin.
6. Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero (30-1-1, 18 KOs) – The Gilroy prizefighter has been on this list for several years. Now that he fights at welterweight he finally might be getting more notice. Guerrero, 29, is set to fight Andre Berto next month at the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California. The southpaw is a remarkable athlete whose talent has not been shown off to the boxing public. A win over the much feared Selcuk Aydin was noticed by real boxing experts. But the regular fight fan didn't understand the impressiveness of the win. Guerrero can be thrown in against any of the elite welterweights and win.
7. Nonito “Filipino Flash” Donaire (30-1, 19 KOs) – Just a few weeks ago Donaire was expected to hit the glass ceiling against Japan's Toshiaki Nishioka in a fight between rival titleholders in the junior featherweight division. Instead, Donaire blitzed the southpaw with his blend of speed and power and never allowed the Japanese fighter to mount an attack. It was impressive. Thankfully, there are a number of fighters in the division that Donaire can fight like Abner Mares or Guillermo Rigondeaux..
8. Andre Ward (26-0, 14 KOs) – Oakland's Ward has virtually cleaned out the loaded super middleweight division. Next, the light heavyweight division awaits the 28-year-old prizefighter whose dominating knockout win over Chad Dawson was his welcoming to the world of 175-pounders. Although the fight against Dawson was held at 168-pounds, few doubt that Ward will be stopped by any light heavyweight in the immediate future. Bring them on.
9. Wladimir Klitschko (58-3, 50 KOs) – Ukraine's Klitschko has steadily improved over the years and surpassed his older brother as the best Klitschko. However, fighting primarily in Europe against unknown heavyweights has hurt the heavyweight dominator. A win over Tony Thompson did him no good. His opposition has been weak throughout his latter career. He needs a good heavyweight challenge to finally make his mark. Who will that be?
10. Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez (33-0, 28 KOs) – The junior flyweight bomber from Nicaragua has an exciting style. Gonzalez, 25, is slated to defend his world title on Nov. 17, against Juan Estrada at the Sports Arena in Los Angeles. Little Chocolate has tight boxing skills and when he connects there's little doubt he packs power. Fighters at this weight don't last very long on this list, but there are exceptions. We'll see if Gonzalez can be the next Ricardo “Finito” Lopez.
11. Danny “Swift” Garcia (25-0, 16 KOs) – The Philadelphia junior welterweight is only 24 years old and a member of this list. Emphatic wins over Kendall Holt and Nate Campbell were good, but knockouts of Amir Khan and Erik Morales guaranteed him a spot on this register of the best fighters on the planet. He still needs work but what he possesses already is quite a bit. He can plain scrap and box with the best boxers today. I wonder how much better Garcia will be in three years?
12. Vitali Klitschko (45-2, 41 KOs) – The elder Klitschko is slowing down and told insiders the end is near. Unimpressive fights against Manuel Charr and Dereck Chisora were chosen over a match with James “Lights Out” Toney. Both Klitschko brothers have ducked Toney for more than a decade. That’s a long time. Now that Vitali is 41 and Toney is 44, why not fight each other. It can’t be because of age.
Honorable Mention:
Abner Mares, Brandon Rios, Gennady Golovkin, Saul Alvarez, Amir Khan, Miguel Cotto, Carl Froch, Leo Santa Cruz, Chad Dawson, Adrien Broner
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Skylar Lacy Blocked for Lamar Jackson before Making his Mark in Boxing
Skylar Lacy, a six-foot-seven heavyweight, returns to the ring on Sunday, Feb. 2, opposing Brandon Moore on a card in Flint, Michigan, airing worldwide on DAZN.
As this is being written, the bookmakers hadn’t yet posted a line on the bout, but one couldn’t be accused of false coloring by calling the 10-round contest a 50/50 fight. And if his frustrating history is any guide, Lacy will have another draw appended to his record or come out on the wrong side of a split decision.
This should not be construed as a tip to wager on Moore. “Close fights just don’t seem to go my way,” says the boxer who played alongside future multi-year NFL MVP Lamar Jackson at the University of Louisville.
A 2021 National Golden Gloves champion, Skylar Lacy came up short in his final amateur bout, losing a split decision to future U.S. Olympian Joshua Edwards. His last Team Combat League assignment resulted in another loss by split decision and he was held to a draw in both instances when stepping up in class as a pro. “In my mind, I’m still undefeated,” says Lacy (8-0-2, 6 KOs). “No one has ever kicked my ass.”
Lacy was the B-side in both of those draws, the first coming in a 6-rounder against Top Rank fighter Antonio Mireles on a Top Rank show in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and the second in an 8-rounder against George Arias, a Lou DiBella fighter on a DiBella-promoted card in Philadelphia.
Lacy had the Mireles fight in hand when he faded in the homestretch. The altitude was a factor. Lake Tahoe, Nevada (officially Stateline) sits 6,225 feet above sea level. The fight with Arias took an opposite tack. Lacy came on strong after a slow start to stave off defeat.
Skylar will be the B-side once again in Michigan. The card’s promoter, former world title challenger Dmitriy Salita, inked Brandon Moore (16-1, 10 KOs) in January. “A capable American heavyweight with charisma, athleticism and skills is rare in today’s day and age. Brandon has got all these ingredients…”, said Salita in the press release announcing the signing. (Salita has an option on Skylar Lacy’s next pro fight in the event that Skylar should win, but the promoter has a larger investment in Moore who was previously signed to Top Rank, a multi-fight deal that evaporated after only one fight.)
Both Lacy and Moore excelled in other sports. The six-foot-six Moore was an outstanding basketball player in high school in Fort Lauderdale and at the NAIA level in college. Lacy was an all-state football lineman in Indiana before going on to the University of Louisville where he started as an offensive guard as a redshirt sophomore, blocking for freshman phenom Lamar Jackson. “Lamar was hard-working and humble,” says Lacy about the player who is now one of the world’s highest-paid professional athletes.
When Lacy committed to Louisville, the head coach was Charlie Strong who went on to become the head coach at the University of Texas. Lacy was never comfortable with Strong’s successor Bobby Petrino and transferred to San Jose State. Having earned his degree in only three years (a BA in communications) he was eligible immediately but never played a down because of injuries.
Returning to Indianapolis where he was raised by his truck dispatcher father, a single parent, Lacy gravitated to Pat McPherson’s IBG (Indy Boxing and Grappling) Gym on the city’s east side where he was the rare college graduate pounding the bags alongside at-risk kids from the city’s poorer neighborhoods.
Lacy built a 12-6 record across his two seasons in Team Combat League while representing the Las Vegas Hustle (2023) and the Boston Butchers (2024).
For the uninitiated, a Team Combat League (TCL) event typically consists of 24 fights, each consisting of one three-minute round. The concept finds no favor with traditionalists, but Lacy is a fan. It’s an incentive for professional boxers to keep in shape between bouts without disturbing their professional record and, notes Lacy, it’s useful in exposing a competitor to different styles.
“It paid the bills and kept me from just sitting around the house,” says Lacy whose 12-6 record was forged against 13 different opponents.
As a sparring partner, Lacy has shared the ring with some of the top heavyweights of his generation, e.g., Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte. He was one of Fury’s regular sparring partners during the Gypsy King’s trilogy with Deontay Wilder. He worked with Joshua at Derrick James’ gym in Dallas and at Ben Davison’s gym in England, helping Joshua prepare for his date in Saudi Arabia with Francis Ngannou and had previously sparred with Ngannou at the UFC Performance Center in Las Vegas. Skylar names traveling to new places as one of his hobbies and he got to scratch that itch when he joined Whyte’s camp in Portugal.
As to the hardest puncher he ever faced, he has no hesitation: “Ngannou,” he says. “I negotiated a nice price to spend a week in his camp and the first time he hit me I knew I should have asked for more.”
Lacy is confident that having shared the ring with some of the sport’s elite heavyweights will get him over the hump in what will be his first 10-rounder (Brandon Moore has never had to fight beyond eight rounds, having won his three 10-rounders inside the distance). Lacy vs. Moore is the co-feature to Claressa Shields’ homecoming fight with Danielle Perkins. Shields, basking in the favorable reviews accorded the big-screen biopic based on her first Olympic journey (“The Fire Inside”) will attempt to capture a title in yet another weight class at the expense of the 42-year-old Perkins, a former professional basketball player.
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Mizuki Hiruta Dominates in her U.S. Debut and Omar Trinidad Wins Too at Commerce
Japan’s Mizuki Hiruta smashed through Mexico’s Maribel Ramirez with ease in winning by technical decision and local hero Omar Trinidad continued his assault on the featherweight division on Friday.
Hiruta (7-0, 2 KOs), who prefers to be called “Mimi,” made her American debut with an impressive performance against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez (15-11-4) and retained the WBO super flyweight world title by unanimous decision at Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.
The pink-haired Japanese southpaw champion quickly proved to be quicker, stronger and even better than advertised. In the opening round Ramirez landed on the floor twice after throwing errant blows. On one instance, it could have been ruled a knockdown but it was not a convincing blow.
In the second round, Ramirez again attacked and again was met with a Hiruta check right hook and down went the Mexican. This time referee Ray Corona gave the eight-count and the fight resumed.
It was Hiruta’s third title defense but this time it was on American soil. She seemed nervous by the prospect of getting a favorable review from the more than 700 fans inside the casino tent.
For more than a year Hiruta has been training off and on with Manny Robles in the L.A. area. Now that she has a visa, she has spent considerable time this year learning the tricks of the trade. They proved explosively effective.
Though Mexico City’s Ramirez has considerable experience against world champions, she discovered that Hiruta was not easy to hit. Often, the Japanese champion would slip and counter with precision.
It was an impressive American debut, though the fight was stopped in the eighth round after a collision of heads. The scores were tallied and all three saw Hiruta the winner by scores of 80-71 twice and 79-72.
“I’m so happy. I could have done much more,” said Hiruta through interpreter Yuriko Miyata. “I wanted to do more things that Manny Robles taught me.”
Trinidad Wins Too
Omar Trinidad (18-0-1, 13 KOs) discovered that challenger Mike Plania (31-5, 18 KOs) has a very good chin and staying power. But over 10 rounds Trinidad proved to be too fast and too busy for the Filipino challenger.
Immediately it was evident that the East L.A. featherweight was too quick and too busy for Plania who preferred a counter-puncher attack that never worked.
“He was strong,” said Trinidad. “He took everything.”
After 10 redundant rounds all three judges scored for Trinidad 100-90 twice and 99-91. He retains the WBC Continental Americas title.
Other Bouts
Ali Akhmedov (23-1, 17 KOs) blasted out Malcolm Jones (17-5-1) in less than two rounds. A dozen punches by Akhmedov forced referee Thomas Taylor to stop the super middleweight fight.
Iyana “Roxy” Verduzco (3-0) bloodied Lindsey Ellis in the first round and continued the speedy assault in the next two rounds. Referee Ray Corona saw enough and stopped the fight in favor of Verduzco at 1:34 of the third round.
Gloria Munguilla (7-1) and Brook Sibrian (5-2) lit up the boxing ring with a nonstop clash for eight rounds in their light flyweight fight. Munguilla proved effective with a slip-and-counter attack. Sibrian adjusted and made the fight closer in the last four rounds but all three judges favored Munguilla.
More Winners
Joshua Anton, Tayden Beltran, Adan Palma, and Alexander Gueche all won their bouts.
Photos credit: Al Applerose
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More
Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More
Best wishes to the survivors of the Los Angeles wildfires that took place last week and are still ongoing in small locales.
Most of the heavy damage took place in the western part of L.A. near the ocean due to Santa Ana winds. Another very hot spot was in Altadena just north of the Rose Bowl. It was a horrific tragedy.
Hopefully the worst is over.
Pro boxing returns with 360 Boxing Promotions spotlighting East L.A.’s Omar Trinidad (17-0-1, 13 KOs) defending a regional featherweight title against Mike Plania (31-4, 18 KOs) on Friday, Jan. 17, at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.
“I’m the king of L.A. boxing and I’ll be ready to put on a show headlining again in the main event. This is my year, I’m ready to challenge and defeat any of the featherweight world champions,” said Trinidad.
UFC Fight Pass will stream the Hollywood Night fight card that includes a female world championship fight and other intriguing match-ups.
Tom Loeffler heads 360 Promotions and once again comes full force with a hot prospect in Trinidad. If you’re not familiar with Loeffler’s history of success, he introduced America to Oleksandr Usyk, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin and the brothers Wladimir and Vitaly Kltischko.
“We’ve got a wealth of international talent and local favorites to kick off our 2025 in grand style,” said Loeffler.
He knows talent.
Trinidad hails from the Boyle Heights area of East L.A. near the Los Angeles riverbed. Several fighters from the past came from that exact area including the first Golden Boy, Art Aragon.
Aragon was a huge gate attraction during the late 1940s until 1960. He was known as a lady’s man and dated several Hollywood starlets in his time. Though he never won a world title he did fight world champions Carmen Basilio, Jimmy Carter and Lauro Salas. He was more or less the king of the Olympic Auditorium and Los Angeles boxing during his career.
Other famous boxers from the Boyle Heights area were notorious gangster Mickey Cohen and former world champion Joey Olivo.
Can Trinidad reach world title status?
Facing Trinidad will be Filipino fighter Plania who’s knocked off a couple of prospects during his career including Joshua “Don’t Blink” Greer and Giovanni Gutierrez. The fighter from General Santos in the Philippines can crack and hold his own in the boxing ring.
It’s a very strong fight card and includes WBO world titlist Mizuki Hiruta of Japan who defends the super flyweight title against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez. It’s a tough matchup for Hiruta who makes her American debut. You can’t miss her with that pink hair and she has all the physical tools to make a splash in this country.
Two other female bouts are also planned, including light flyweight banger L.A.’s Gloria Munguilla (6-1) against Coachella’s Brook Sibrian (5-1) in a match set for six rounds. Both are talented fighters. Another female fight includes super featherweights Iyana “Right Hook Roxy” Verduzco (2-0) versus Lindsey Ellis (2-1) in another six-rounder. Ellis can crack with all her wins coming via knockout. Verduzco is a multi-national titlist as an amateur.
Others scheduled to perform are Ali Akhmedov, Joshua Anton, Adan Palma and more.
Doors open at 4:30 p.m.
Boxing and the Media
The sport of professional boxing is currently in flux. It’s always in flux but no matter what people may say or write, boxing will survive.
Whether you like Jake Paul or not, he proved boxing has worldwide appeal with monstrous success in his last show. He has media companies looking at the numbers and imagining what they can do with the sport.
Sure, UFC is negotiating a massive billion dollar deal with media companies, as is WWE, both are very similar in that they provide combat entertainment. You don’t need to know the champions because they really don’t matter. Its about the attractions.
Boxing is different. The good champions last and build a following that endures even beyond their careers a la Mike Tyson.
MMA can’t provide that longevity, but it does provide entertainment.
Currently, there is talk of establishing a boxing league again. It’s been done over and over but we shall see if it sticks this time.
Pro boxing is the true warrior’s path and that means a solo adventure. It’s a one-on-one sport and that appeals to people everywhere. It’s the oldest sport that can be traced to prehistoric times. You don’t need classes in Brazilian Jiujitsu, judo, kick boxing or wrestling. Just show up in a boxing gym and they can put you to work.
It’s a poor person’s path that can lead to better things and most importantly discipline.
Photos credit: Lina Baker
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